Tom Brady Says His Accuracy Needs to Improve After Inconsistent Start

With the New England Patriots looking inconsistent after a 4-2 start in 2017, quarterback Tom Brady would like to make improvements in his game to help the defending Super Bowl champions play to their usual standards. 

Specifically, Brady believes his throwing accuracy needs to be better for the offense to thrive.        

"When the throws are there, I have to be able to make them," he said Friday, per ESPN.com's Mike Reiss. "It's disappointing when I don't. ... I wish I hit them all. I'm capable of hitting them all. I need to be able to do that."

Greg Cosell of NFL Films said on a recent episode of the Fantasy Guru podcast that he's seen a noticeable drop in Brady's accuracy, via Kevin Duffy of MassLive.com:

"The timing of the Patriots' pass game is not quite there yet with the precision that we're used to seeing. Now, I don't think it's dramatic and I think it will improve, but I think one thing that has shown up this season is Brady has not been as ridiculously accurate with the same consistency that has defined his game throughout his career."

Brady's self-criticism isn't unwarranted. The 40-year-old completed 44 percent of his passing attempts in a Week 1 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs and went just 20-of-38 in Week 6 against the New York Jets. 

Sandwiched between those two performances, though, Brady completed 73.6 percent of his passes with 11 touchdowns and one interception in four games. His 8.4 yards per attempt is the second-highest total of his career (8.6 in 2011). 

For the season, Brady is completing 65.7 percent of his passes. That's his second-best completion percentage since 2011 (he connected on 67.4 percent of his attempts in 2016).

Brady will have a chance to correct his issues Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons in a rematch of Super Bowl LI at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts. The last time these teams met, the Patriots erased a 25-point deficit to win the franchise's fifth championship since 2001.

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